


Jimmy's Mr. Bear

by Maddie_Jae



Category: Supernatural
Genre: Established Castiel/Dean Winchester, Fluff, Homophobia, M/M, Parent Castiel, Parent Dean Winchester
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-01
Updated: 2018-07-01
Packaged: 2019-05-31 22:48:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,388
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15129425
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Maddie_Jae/pseuds/Maddie_Jae
Summary: Parents Castiel and Dean Winchester bring their young son Jimmy to an appreciation dinner through the company Dean works for.  And of course Jimmy has to bring his beloved stuffed teddy bear with him.





	Jimmy's Mr. Bear

Tensions were slowly teetering towards high in the Winchester household, though Castiel thought his husband was hiding it well.  Tonight was an important night for Dean, it was the first dinner party with the executives of the company Dean worked for since he had gotten that big promotion.  

Castiel was in the bedroom, struggling to get his tie on straight and cursing his perpetual bedhead.  Castiel wished he looked a little more high class. It would be hard enough for Dean to bring his husband while every single other person Dean worked with would be bringing their wives.  It didn’t help that Castiel looked completely out of place in a suit. One of Dean’s suits, to be exact, since Castiel was a middle school English teacher and nothing in his side of the closet could be considered ‘formal.’  Castiel was just about swimming in his husband’s too-large slacks and jacket.

“Almost ready, Cas?”  Dean asked, appearing in the bedroom doorway with their almost three year old on his hip.  Little Jimmy looked absolutely adorable in his tiny suit, with his itty-bitty vest and pint-sized loafers.

“Couldn’t convince him to leave the bear behind, huh?”  Castiel asked, giving his reflection one last glance before following Dean and Jimmy to the front door.

“Nope.”  Dean said lightly, holding the front door open for Castiel with a smile.  Castiel followed Dean’s silent request to take Jimmy, collecting the small boy and the teddy bear that was nearly as big as his son.

“No, I decided to pick my battles on this one.”  Dean said with a small sigh of defeat as he locked the front door.  “The last thing I want is a crying baby to start off the night.”

“Not a baby!”  Jimmy suddenly piped up, indignant at the insinuation.  Castiel couldn’t see his son’s face, but he’d bet his next paycheck that Jimmy was glaring at Dean over Castiel’s shoulder as Dean followed his husband down the driveway.

“You’re not my baby boy, Jimmy?”  Dean asked sweetly as Castiel opened the rear door of his car to load Jimmy into his car seat.  Jimmy’s resounding ‘No’ made both his dads laugh softly.

“Tell Papa that you’re a big boy, Jimmy.”  Castiel said as he buckled his son in. Jimmy didn’t respond, just watched with passive interest as Dean rounded the car and climbed into the driver’s seat.  Castiel handed Jimmy his stuffed bear once the booster seat buckles were secured, and the boy pulled his bear in for a big hug.

 

“Jimmy, don’t you think Mr. Bear would like to wait in the car?”  Dean asked, and though his voice was hopeful, Dean and Castiel both knew that there was no way Jimmy would voluntarily leave his favorite toy behind.

“No, Papa!  It scary!” Jimmy told Dean seriously, the young boy’s eyes darting around the dark parking lot as Dean pulled him into his arms.  Jimmy held his bear protectively to his chest even as Dean held Jimmy close and safe in his arms.

Dean gave his husband a smile and a shrug that clearly asked ‘what can you do?’ and took Castiel’s hand.

“Are you nervous?”  Castiel asked, giving his husband’s fingers a squeeze.

“Nah.”  Dean said easily, taking a deep breath of the cool night air.  “It’ll be fine.”

 

And the party was fine; all of Dean’s bosses and co-workers were perfectly polite to Castiel, and the many trophy wives in attendance all adored Jimmy.  Dinner was served in a large room, then later the drinks were served out on the balcony. The city looked beautiful from nine stories in the air, and the cool breeze was fended off by numerous fires burning behind metal grates.

Dean had been whisked away by one of his bosses to meet someone that Castiel could only assume was a very important someone.  The move left Castiel alone to chat with a small group of housewives that looked every bit as uncomfortable with the finery of the party as Castiel was feeling.  While Castiel wished his husband was by his side, he couldn’t help but think he’d found his niche among the partygoers.

Jimmy’s shyness had abandoned him sometimes between dinner and coming outside.  The boy was dividing Castiel’s attention between the conversation he was trying to have with some of Dean’s younger co-workers’ wives and keeping a careful eye on Jimmy as he walked around talking in half-formed sentences to anyone who would listen.

Castiel’s eyes found his son again, this time talking to a burly man that Castiel knew as important in the company, but wasn’t one of Dean’s bosses.  The man was listening to whatever Jimmy was telling him, nodding along with ‘uh-huh’s’ and ‘oh, nice’s’ as the little boy explained something, holding up his stuffed bear to show it off.

Castiel smiled at the attention his son was getting, it seemed like every conversation Castiel had had that evening started off with someone gushing about how cute and well-behaved Jimmy was.  Castiel turned his attention back to the woman in front of him, thinking Jimmy was fine and not really bothering the man he was speaking with too much.

The woman was asking about how he’d met Dean, and Castiel was just about to answer when it happened.  The woman’s eyes slid to the side and widened, and she let out a soft gasp that had Castiel’s sentence dying in his throat.  The peace lasted for all of two more seconds before a heart-wrenching wail was cried out, effectively silencing over half of the partygoers.

Castiel didn’t have to turn to know it was his son screaming, Jimmy was the youngest child here by far, and likely the only one young enough to still throw tantrums in public (even though Jimmy was a fairly well-behaved child and only reserved tantrums for especially difficult days).  Call it instinct, but Castiel was rushing towards his son before his eyes had fully taken in the scene in front of him.

Jimmy was standing right were Castiel had last seen him, looking up with tears in his eyes at the tall man he’d been speaking to.  The man had his back to Jimmy, was facing the edge of the balcony with one arm stretched out in front of him. Castiel turned just in time to see his son’s favorite toy, the teddy bear Jimmy had carried everywhere with him since he’d learned to walk, sail over the ledge of the ninth story balcony.

“No!”  Jimmy screamed, rushing toward the ledge as if there were anything he could do.  “My teddy!”

Castiel caught his son before he could reach the ledge.  Not that Jimmy could climb over the railing without the help of a chair or table, but the boy was clearly distraught and Castiel was nauseous just thinking of the possibilities.

“Daddy, Daddy!  Put me down!” Jimmy demanded, his eyes wild.  “Teddy!” He called out again, following up with another wail.

“It’s okay, honey.”  Castiel heard himself saying, rubbing his son’s back soothingly though he was still pretty panicked himself.  “It’s all right, Jimmy.” Jimmy buried his face into Castiel’s shoulder, overcome with tears and being quite vocal about his loss.  He beat Castiel’s chest with his tiny fists, too caught up in the moment to remember not to hit.

“What happened?”  Castiel demanded, rounding on the man Jimmy had been speaking with.   He asked even though he was pretty sure he already knew exactly what happened

“A boy his age doesn’t need to carry around a stuffed animal like that.”  The man said, clearly unashamed of his actions. “Best get rid of it now, before it messes him up for life.  You don’t want your son to grow up to be a pussy, do you? I mean, _look_ at him, it’s just a _bear._ ”

Castiel sputtered for half a second, completely agast that this man would take something like that into his own hands.  Dozens of rude retorts were bouncing around in Castiel’s brain, but weren’t quite making it out past his lips as he stared at the man in a cold fury.

Dean was upon them then, his shaking hands landing on Jimmy’s back and running down his sides.  Checking for injuries, Castiel knew, because Dean had had a difficult life and he was terrified of his son being hurt.  Worry made new lines appear on Dean’s young face as he quietly but urgently asked what happened.

“That man threw Jimmy’s bear off the building.”  Castiel said lowly, his voice shaking in his rage.

“ _What?”_  Dean asked under his breath, glancing back at the man.

“He said Jimmy’s too old for a bear.” Castiel murmured to his husband, his words nearly drowned out by another round of screams from his son.

“Take him inside.”  Dean said, already guiding Castiel back into the dining area.  “I’ll go down and see if I can find it.”

“We’re nine stories up, Dean.”  Castiel said, glaring menacingly at the other partygoers as they stared at his family like they’d never seen a distraught child before.  He hurried through the door Dean held open for him to get his son away from the judging looks. “The wind’s blowing, the bear’s probably long gone by now.”

His words made Jimmy wail again, and beat his fists against Castiel’s chest and kick his feet against his sides.  He screamed, high pitched and wordless, until he’d used all his air and had to take a breather. Castiel rubbed his son’s back and didn’t shush him again now that they were more or less alone.

“I know, babe.  If I can’t find it, we’ll go get him a new one.”  Dean touched Jimmy’s back gently, rubbing small circles as Castiel settled into a seat in the corner of the room.  “I’ll be right back, buddy.” He told Jimmy, but his son wasn’t listening.

 

“Hey Jimmy.”  Castiel started softly, patting his son’s back.  “How are you feeling?”

Dean had been gone for half an hour, and Jimmy had been bawling the whole time.  Bawling was putting it nicely, though. Jimmy had been kicking, screaming that high-pitched, ear-piercing scream he’d learned from the kids at his daycare, throwing anything he could get his hands on, the works.  Half an hour put this as the longest tantrum Jimmy had ever put either of his parents through, but Castiel couldn’t even be upset. If he’d lost something as important to him as Jimmy’s bear was to Jimmy, Castiel would be upset for quite a while, too.

And the bear hadn’t even been lost because Jimmy did something wrong.  The boy hadn’t thoughtlessly left it on a park bench or at the turtle exhibit at the zoo, a grown-ass man had _taken it from him_ and _threw it off a balcony_.

Jimmy’s tantrum had given Castiel time to collect himself, and he’d kept an eye on the door, watching people coming and going, waiting for the man who’d thrown Jimmy’s bear to dare show his face.  Castiel didn’t care if the man was an important person in Dean’s company, Castiel had some words for the jackass.

Castiel silently patted his son’s back for a few more seconds, listening to his son’s deep breathing as he laid bonelessly on Castiel’s chest with his head on Castiel’s shoulder.  “Hey buddy,” Castiel tried again, and, taking Jimmy’s sniffle as confirmation that he was listening, said, “I’m so sorry that happened, Jimmy. It wasn’t right of that man to take your bear.”

“Why?”  Jimmy asked with a waver in his voice.

“I don’t know why, honey.”  Castiel admitted. “Sometimes people are just mean.”

Jimmy lifted up his head and leaned back to look at his dad.  “Mean man, Daddy. Hit him.”

“We don’t hit, remember?”  Castiel said patiently. “You got in trouble at school for hitting.”

“No, Daddy.”  Jimmy said, rubbing at one of his eyes with his fist.  “ _You._ ”

Castiel chuckled once, humorlessly, when he realized what his son wanted from him.  “I can’t hit people, either, buddy.” Castiel waited until his son’s eyes were on him.  “What that man did was wrong, and he shouldn’t have done it, but that doesn’t mean we should do something bad, too.”

Jimmy didn’t look convinced, but after a moment more he let his eyes fall.  His bottom lip poked out and Castiel saw fresh tears running down his son’s face.  “Papa will find teddy, right?”

Castiel sighed, glancing up at the clock on the wall.  Dean had been gone for almost forty minutes. “I don’t know, buddy.  I hope so.” Jimmy frowned and settled against Castiel’s chest with his head tucked under his father’s chin and cried.

It was over an hour after Jimmy’s Mr. Bear had been tossed from the balcony.  Jimmy’s tears had dwindled into silent tears and pitiful hiccups, and Castiel was starting to worry for his husband.

Castiel was pulling out his phone, intending to call Dean and check in, when Dean himself walked up to Castiel and Jimmy.  His shoes and the bottom several inches of his slacks were slick with mud, his face was shiny with sweat, and tiny scratches criss-crossed his face and hands.  He looked like hell, but miraculously he was carrying Jimmy’s bear in one hand.

“Jimmy, look what Papa has!”  Castiel said in an excited whisper.  Jimmy’s head shot up from where it had been resting on Castiel’s collarbone, and immediately he was squirming his way out of Castiel’s lap and running to close the short distance between him and Dean.

Dean pulled Jimmy into his arms and the little boy immediately started crying again as he hugged his dad with one arm and his bear with the other.  Castiel got to his feet to join his family, albeit at a little slower pace than Jimmy.

“Thank you, Papa.”  Castiel heard Jimmy say with fresh tears audible in his voice, his face buried in the soft fur of his bear.

“You’re welcome, buddy.”  Dean said, planting a quick peck onto Jimmy’s forehead just as Castiel wound his arms around Dean’s waist.

“Where was it?”  Castiel asked softly.

“In the wooded area at the back of the field on the far side of the parking lot.”  Dean said, grinning and letting his forehead rest against Castiel’s.

“Thank you, Dean.”  Castiel said.

“Anything for the little man.”  Dean mumbled, kissing Castiel somewhere near his eyebrow.  “Let’s go home.”

“Here, you’ve done enough, I’ll carry Jimmy to the car.”  Castiel offered.

“Thanks, Cas.”  Dean sighed, handing over their son, who still had his face buried in the fur of his bear.

“Do you need to say goodbye to anyone?”  Castiel asked, letting Dean guide him to the door.

“Nah.  I’ll see them all on Monday.  No big deal.” Dean said, sighing almost despite himself.

“I’m sorry, Dean.”  Castiel solemnly. “I know this was a big night for you.”

“It’s just a dinner, Cas.”  Dean insisted, turning his bright green eyes to Castiel.  “There’ll be others.” Castiel sighed, lifted one corner of his mouth in a small smile and was just about to open his mouth when a booming voice spoke over him.

“I can’t believe you went and found that shitty toy, Winchester.”  The man who’d thrown Jimmy’s bear off the balcony said. He was standing in their way, blocking the door and looking at Dean with something akin to disappointment.  

“I can’t believe plenty of things about tonight, Todd.  And not one of them is finding my son’s toy.” Dean said, guiding Castiel around the man with a firm hand on the small of his back.

“He’s too old to be carrying it around like that.”  Todd insisted, stepping to the side to once again block their path.

“He’s two, dude.  Leave it alone.” Dean said angrily.  Castiel put a hand on his husband’s shoulder, knowing all too well how much of a hothead Dean could be.  Dean glanced at him and nodded, once again walking around Todd and this time, the man let them.

As they passed, Castiel heard the man mutter something that sounded a bit like ‘fairy of a dad.’  And a split second later, Dean had whipped around and punched the man square in the jaw. Todd went down in a heap, and Dean stood over him with one fist raised, breathing like he’d just run a marathon.

Castiel had a hand on his husband in the next moment, ready to pull Dean back, but he didn’t make a move to continue his assault.

“How’s that for a fairy, Todd?”  Dean asked, the only voice that pierced the silence that pervaded the room.

 

The car ride home was a tense and utterly quiet one.  Castiel’s mind was racing, wondering how on earth they were going to keep the bills paid once Dean got fired (and he was _definitely_ getting fired for punching that man, whether it was his boss or not) with only the income form Castiel’s public school teacher job.

Predictably, they’d been forcibly escorted out of the dinner party, Dean with a little more force than Castiel.  Castiel had worried for his husband, the bouncers really hadn’t _needed_ to twist Dean’s arm behind his back like that, but all Dean had been concerned about was the bouncers treatment of Castiel.  He’d yelled at them, saying ‘get your hands off my husband, you bastard,’ even though Castiel’s bouncer had only had a firm grip on Castiel’s shoulder on the way out.

Dean was still fuming, though it was obvious that he was holding back his rant, probably saving it for until after Jimmy’s bedtime.  Dean had a death grip on the steering wheel, he hadn’t said a word since he’d yelled at the bouncer who’d escorted Castiel out for ‘roughing up’ a man who was carrying his small child (Castiel hadn’t been roughed up in even the loosest sense of the word, though that had seemed lost on Dean in the heat of the moment).

 _What a night_.  Castiel thought with a sigh, glancing back at his son.  Jimmy looked too small in his carseat, though it might have only seemed so because of the teddy bear that was hiding his tiny frame.  Jimmy held his bear close, eyes wide and glued to the back of Dean’s head.

Castiel’s eyes moved to Dean when he shook his head and scoffed angrily, smacking the steering wheel with an open palm.  The seconds stretched tensely, the silence only broken by the hum of the car’s engine, while Castiel searched for something to say.

“Do you want to talk about it?”  He asked cautiously, keeping his eyes focused on the inky black night on the other side of the windshield.

“Not yet.”  Dean said, soft but short.

“‘Kay.”  Castiel whispered, turning to look out the passenger side window.  Rain was beginning to fall, and Castiel wondered if the party had been moved in from the balcony as silence once again filled the car.

“Papa, Daddy says ‘it’s not okay to hit.’”  Jimmy said matter-of-factly. The tense silence lasted for another few seconds, and then Dean burst out laughing.  Dean laughed until tears were streaming down his face and he’d needed to wrap an arm around his chest to splint his ribs.  He laughed until Jimmy joined in, laughed until Castiel joined in, laughed until Castiel felt some measure of relief settle into his chest.

Tonight had been bad.  Jimmy had lost his bear, but he was sitting in his booster seat with Mr. Bear safe and sound in his arms.  Dean had lost his temper, but he’d done it in the name of defending his son and his family. Dean had probably lost his job, but there would be other jobs, and they had savings, they had some wiggle room.  Nothing about that night was ideal, but they still had each other, and they’d be okay.

“Daddy’s right, Jimmy.”  Dean said once his laughter had died down into manageable chuckles.  “I’ll do better to listen to him next time.” He promised, wiping tears from his eyes as he glanced in the rear-view mirror at his son.

“You can try again tomorrow, Papa.”  Jimmy said, mimicking the saying Dean always said when Jimmy was having a bad day.

“Good idea, buddy.”  Dean said fondly, reaching for Castiel’s hand.  Castiel squeezed his husband’s fingers tightly, laughing softly again despite himself.

**Author's Note:**

> This used to be in a collection of one shots, but I decided to go a different route.  
> Thanks for reading!


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